Idea's on keeping your dog cool during the summer

There are cooling mats you can get that help cool your dog off and keep them cool. Although they don't work very well outside in direct sunlight. My dog can NOT swim even though she loves to try so the beach and pools aren't great options. The small plastic kiddie pools that are only about a foot or so deep work wonders and only take a few minutes to fill up so you can keep the water fresh. Dogs pant to cool themselves so shorter snouted dogs have a harder time cooling off. Keeping your dog cool and hydrated is KEY.

I used to have a little Pekinese that could not swim. When I put her in water (like a lake or swimming pool), she would turn almost vertical with just her little puggy nose sticking out and her short little legs paddling furiously. She actually enjoyd the water, but she could not swim. So I would put my hand under her tummy, like you do when teaching a small child to swim, and then she could happily paddle around in the water, and thought it was great fun. I guess she needed some "doggy swim wings" like they make for little kids.
I have seen the advertisements for the cool mats, and those do look like they would be a nice thing for a dog to lie on during the summer, but they would have to be somewhere that the water didn't heat up, or they would do the reverse, and heat the dog up.
My dog, Chipper, mostly stays inside, and I put a fan on the floor, and he will lie in front of that to keep cooled off on hot summer days.

When we are home and go outside, they can get into one of the kiddy pools. I have three. One for potted plants to soak in, one for them, and a big one for me to stretch out in.

I also have a utility fan, actually 2 but only use one usually. I also have a garden mister. I love that fine spray. I do have a patio umbrella but it is broken and I just kind of jerry rig it with a couple of bungie cords to stay open when we are on the patio.

We are an active family, and when we are out, if I take them with me, I leave them in the car with the AC running. I have an extra set of keys. Granted, I don't go anywhere 'big' really that leaving a car running would be a problem with it getting broken into or anything. And our daughter is grown, so there are no reasons for me not to think of the obvious solution.

I usually have one of those big outdoor fans outside and just keep alot of cold water around for him to stay hydrated. That really should do it unless you have a really really thick coated fur type dog then if it gets too hot you might want to get bring him in the house.

My Daughter and Son in Law have nine little dogs, all rescue dogs each with a story. It is a good thing they own their own home and have a huge back yard, with a high fence, and doggie doors going into the garage, and one going into the house.

They have made a doggie spa in the yard, with a kids swimming pool to where if they want to get into the water to cool off they can, and Yes about 6 out of the 9 will.

My Son in Law bought a children's sand box at a garage sale, it has a lid to cover it so the cats stay out of the sand when it is not being used.

He bought this to make a swimming pool, cool off tank for their little dogs. It works great, and when they aren't around to keep a check on them, they put the lid on.

I was reading an article about dogs getting over heated fast if left in a car even with the windows cracked. If it is hot out, do yourself and your pet a favor and leave them home. The article also gave some tips on how to help your dog cool down if this happened. One was take a cool wet rag, and rub it on the inside of the dogs legs, and on his tummy.

I bought a plastic baby pool (not a blow up) at Toys R Us for $8. I put about two inches of pool water in it so that it is not freezing cold hose water and then I pick up my Lab puppy and stand in it with her. She is a little hesitant with water (she is part terrier and is also a rescue pup) so I gently cup the water in my hands and rub it on her coat to cool her down. She won't stay in the pool on her own yet but I think when she realizes it is safe she will start using It on her own. Our last lab, Shelby, loved the water and took over a similar pool that was supposed to be for our kids. She would just lay down in the few inches of water for a few minutes and then go shake off and lay in the shade until she was ready for another dip.

That is a great question and I have enjoyed reading some of the posts to this thread!

As a special sunny day treat for my dogs I make chicken broth (low sodium, low fat) ice cubes for them to enjoy.

My pitbull terrier gets hot pretty quickly during the summer. He hates the heat, and he'll just lounge around and do nothing all day because the heat makes him so lazy. To cool him I'll let him play in the sprinkler or kiddie pool. I also fill his kong with peanut butter and other chewy stuff and freeze it for a couple hours. Frozen dog toys are a huge challenge for him and will keep him busy and cool for a long period of time. If it's particularly hot I'll add some ice cubes to his water.